Car-coupling.



W. KBLSO.

GAR COUPLING.

APPLICATION FILED DEC. 3, 191a Patented Feb. 24, 1914.

2 SHEETS-BEBE?! 1.

wuwwtoz W. KBLSO.

GAR COUPLING.

APPLICATION FILED DEG.3,1913.

1,088,590.; Patented Feb. 24, 1914.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

STATS AETENT OFFICE.

WILLIAM KELSO, OF PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA, ASSIGNOR TO MGCONWAY &

TORLEY COMPANY, OF PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA, A CORPORATION OF PENN- SYLVANIA.

CAR-COUPLING.

Application filed December 3, 1918.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that 1, WILLIAM Kneso, a citizen of the United States, residing at Pittsburgh, in the county of Allegheny and State of Pennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Car- Couplers; and 1 do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to vertical plane type car couplers for railway cars and preferably to a top operated coupler having a vertical sliding lock, and its primary object is to provide knuckle opening mechanism which is so arranged that a limited upward movement of the lock will cause a complete movement of the knuckle opening lever.

To this end the main feature of my invention, generally stated, consists in interposing between the locking mechanism and knuckle opening mechanism a lever and in so modifying the locking and knuckle opening mechanism that the lever can be connected to one and arranged to operate the other to produce the result indicated above.

Another feature of my invention consists in pivoting the knuckle opening lever beneath the floor of the coupler head, on the knuckle side thereof, whereby the vertical height of the coupler head is materially decreased and the strength of the head correspondingly increased. My invention is, therefore, especially advantageous in that it permits the use of a top operated car coupler of the vertical plane type in passenger car service, wherein the limited space provided between the top of the coupler head and under side of the buffer or platform prevents the convenient and effective employment of top operated couplers such as are now in use.

There are other features of my invention as will appear from a more detailed description of the invention taken in connection with the accompanying drawings chosen for the purpose of illustrating my invention, the scope whereof is pointed out in the claims.

The type of coupler chosen for the purpose of illustrating one application of my invention is shown and described in my prior Patent, No. 950,485, patented March Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 24, 1914.

Serial No. 804,409.

1, 1910, yet it is to be expressly understood that my invention is not limited to the type of coupler with pivoted head, as shown in said patent, but may be used with other and widely different types.

Figure 1 is a top plan view of a coupler head, parts being broken away, showing my invention. Fig. 2 is a vertical section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1, showing in full and dotted lines the positions of the various elements in locked and unlocked positions, respectively. Fig. 3 is a vertical section on the line 22 of Fig. 1, showing the position of the various elements with the knuckle forced to full open position. Fig. 4 is a partial horizontal section on the line k t, Fig. 2. Fig. 5 is a vertical section on the line 55 of Fig. 4c, and Fig. 6 is an elevation of the coupler head and stem or drawbar and showing in section the buffer, buffor beam and draw-bar carry iron.

The coupler head, which is generally des ignated by the reference numeral 1, is provided with the usual pivoted knuckle 2, a rigid guard-arm 3 and pivot bearings 4: by which the head may be connected to the coupler stem.

The knuckle 2 is pivoted to the coupler head 1 by the pin 6 and is provided with a rearwardly extending arm or tail 7 terminating in an outwardly directed hook 8.

The numeral 9 designates a vertically sliding locking pin which is preferably provided with a body portion 10 and with a downwardly directed offset stem 11, and loosely connected to the top of the body portion 10, as for example by pivot lugs 10 is a link 12 to connect the operating mechanism thereto. Rigidly connected to the stem 11 near the lower end thereof are lugs or studs 13, 13, the function and purpose whereof will be more fully explained hereinafter.

The locking pin 9 extends through suitable openings in the upper wall 14 and the floor 15 of the coupler head. Extending downwardly from the floor 15 of the coupler, and on the knuckle side-of the coupler head, are a pair of spaced, perforated lugs 16, 16, said lugs being arranged at an angle to the longitudinal axis of the coupler. Pivoted to said lugs by a pivot pin 17 is an L-shaped knuckle opening lever 18, said lever being provided with an upwardly extending arm 19 and with a substantially horizontal and inwardly extending arm 20 which is spaced a suitable distance from the floor of the coupler head. The arm 19 preferably extends through an elongated slot 21 in the coupler floor, said slot being arranged at an angle to the longitudinal axis of the coupler; and said arm rests within the recess formed between the rear face of the arm and the forward face of the hook 8 of the knuckle 9.

Intermediate of the pivot lugs 16, 16 and the locking pin opening in the floor 0f the coupler is a downwardly directed rib 22 which may be provided with a rounded bearing surface 23, said surface being above the lower face of the rib and having at either side thereof guide flanges 24 and 25, respectively.

A lever 26, which may have its opposite ends 27 and 2S offset both vertically and laterally, is arranged beneath the bottom wall of the coupler, the said lever bearing against the surface 23 and being preferably connected to the locking pin by means of a slotted or bifurcated portion 29 which closely embraces the stem of the locking'pin above the studs or lugs 13, 13. The opposite end of the said lever rests upon the arm 20 of the knuckle opening lever 18. The upper surface of the bifurcated portion 29. of the lever 26 is preferably beveled so as to enable the latter to move the knuckle opening lever 18 to the extreme position shown in Fig. 3 and to provide a comparatively large bearing area for engaging the lower side of the coupler head to limit the movement of the lever 26.

In Fig. 6 is shown a buffer beam 30, a buffer plate 31, a foot plate 31, a draw-bar carry iron 32 and a draw-bar or coupler stem 1 to which the coupler head 1 is pivoted by the pin 5. There is also shown the outer end of an uncoupling mechanism designated by the reference numeral 12 Since these parts form no part of the invention as claimed, no further detailed description is deemed necessary.

The operation of the device is as follows: An upward movement of the locking pin from locked to unlocked position causes a movement of the lever 26 and a movement of the knuckle opening lever 18, bringing the arm 19 of the latter into contact with the rear wall of the knuckle arm 7. upward movement of the locking pin will cause the lever 26 to move the knuckle opening lever to the limit of its movement, thereby forcing the knuckle to full open position. Owing to the relative position of the interposed lever 26 a relatively slight upward movement of the locking pin from its unlocked to its extreme upward position causes a complete movement of the knuckle opening lever, as will be readily seen from an inspection of Figs. 2 and 3.

Having thus described my invention,

A further what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. The combination with a coupler head, of a knuckle pivoted thereon, a lock for said knuckle, a knuckle opening lever, and actuating means for said lever, said means consisting ofa lever engaging and supported by said knuckle opening lever and said lock.

2. The combination with a coupler head, of a knuckle pivoted thereon, a lock for said knuckle, a knuckle opening lever, and actuating means for said lever, said means including a lever having a floating bearing on a portion of the coupler head and engaging said knuckle opening lever and adapted to be operated by said lock.

3. The combination with a coupler head, of a knuckle pivoted thereon, a lock for said knuckle, a knuckle opening lever, and means for operating said lever, said means including a lever having a loose connection with said lock, and a floating bearing on a portion of the coupler head and being adapted to engage and operate the knuckle opening lever after a predetermined movement 0 said look. i

4. The combination with a coupler head, of a knuckle pivoted thereon, a lock for said knuckle. a knuckle opening lever, said lever having an arm which extends through the floor of the coupler head and is adapted to contact with the rear face of the knuckle tail, said arm being adapted to follow the knuckle tail in its outward movement, and means to move said lever.

The combination with a coupler head, of a knuckle pivoted thereon, a lock for said knuckle, a knuckle opening lever, said lever being pivoted beneath the coupler floor, and provided with an arm, said arm ext-ending through an opening in said fioor and contacting with the rear face of the knuckle tail, and said arm being adapted to follow the knuckle in its outward movement, and means to move said lever.

6. The combination with a coupler head, a knuckle pivoted thereon, a lock for said knuckle, said head being provided on the lower face with perforated lugs which extend at an angle to transverse axis of the head, said lugs being on the knuckle side of the coupler head, a knuckle opening lever pivoted to said lugs, one arm of said lever extending through an elongated slot in the bottom wall of said coupler head and contacting with the rear face of the knuckle tail, and adapted to follow the said knuckle in its outward movement, and means to actuate said lever.

7 The combination with a coupler head, of a knuckle pivotally mounted thereon, a

lock for said knuckle, an L-shaped knuckle opening lever pivotally mounted beneath the coupler head floor, one arm oi said lever extending through a suitable slot provided in the bottom wall of the said head, the other arm of the said lever extending at an angle to both the longitudinal and transverse axis of the coupler head, and actuating means for said lever, said means being connected to said lock and adapted to operate said lever to open said knuckle after a limited predetermined movement of said lock. 8. The combination with a coupler head, of a knuckle pivotally mounted thereon, a lock for said knuckle, a knuckle opening lever pivotally mounted on said head, said lever having an upwardly extending arm and a transversely extending arm, and an actuating device for said lever, said device including a lever arranged between said lock and said knuckle opening lever, said second mentioned lever being connected to said lock and adapted to operate the said knuckle opening lever after a predetermined movement of said lock.

9. The combination with a coupler head, a knuckle pivoted thereon, a vertically slid ing lock for said knuckle, a knuckle opening lever pivotally mounted beneath the floor of said head, said head being provided on the lower face thereof with a bearing rib, and an actuating device for said knuckle opening lever, said device including a lever, said lever having its ends offset both vertically and horizontally, said actuating lever being slidably connected to the lock and having a floating bearing on said rib and being adapted to operate said knuckle opening lever after a predetermined movement of said lock.

In testimony whereof I ailix my signature, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

WILLIAM KELSO.

Witnesses J. W. HARTLEY, F. D. ECKER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Iatenti. Washington, D. G. 

